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Hello International Traders! Vietnam is a fast-growing market that's full of opportunity, and
if you want to research it, I have a great site to help you.
Leaving for an international trip? Check out the Country Travel
Reports site I have in this issue. If you export, import, or
merely ship occasional packages overseas, read about the new
tools FedEx has to help you at their Web site. Finally, your kids
will get fast, age-appropriate answers to their questions at
AskJeeves Kids, the site I profile in this issue. And don't forget -- if you'd like more information about
international trade, go to FITA's Really Useful Links (
http://fita.org/webindex/index.html ), which has a link library
of more than 8,000 sites related to international trade.
| VIETNAM -- OUR FEATURED COUNTRY
Vietnam had a few rocky years during the Asian financial crisis
of the late 1990s, but the country seems to be back on track. GDP
growth since 2000 has been averaging almost 7 percent a year, and
Vietnam's leaders have made a strong commitment to modernizing
the economy and promoting trade (an example is the US-Vietnam
Bilateral Trade Agreement of 2001).
If you'd like to research trade opportunities with this growing
Southeast Asian nation, go to the U.S. Commercial Service Vietnam
Page ( http://www.buyusa.gov/vietnam/en/ ). Click on "Doing
Business in Vietnam" and you'll find reports on current market
conditions and upcoming opportunities; Do's and Dont's for
business practices in the country; information on the best
prospects for exporting to Vietnam; a country commercial guide;
trade regulations; a list of trade events; news about the
Bilateral Trade Agreement; and more. The site is oriented toward
US companies, but there's plenty of good information here no
matter what country you're from.
Another good resource is the Vietnam Mini Portal (
http://fita.org/countries/vietnam.html), one of the new features
at the FITA site. The Mini Portal is a good place to start your
research. There is an overview of the country, with facts about
the language, currency, climate, etc., plus more specific
information about the economy, Vietnamese markets, taxes, labor
market indicators, tips on doing business, and a search engine to
help you find market research on the Internet. There's also a
news feed with the latest Vietnam news.
Click on "Useful Links" and you'll find a variety of sources for
market research, trade leads, business directories, logistics,
government contacts, travel, financing, and lots more.
The Vietnam Mini Portal is one of many research gateways at the
newly redesigned FITA site. To find Mini Portals for other
regions or countries, just click on "Country Profiles" from
within a Mini Portal, or at the FITA home page (
http://www.fita.org ).
FITA's Global Trade Book Store has some excellent books about doing
business in the EU. Check out Succeed in Business: Vietnam and Passport Vietnam: Your Pocket Guide to Vietnamese Business, Customs & Etiquette. And the
US - Vietnam Chamber of Commerce is a FITA member association. Check out their website
for more resources about doing business with Vietnam.
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FEDEX GLOBAL TRADE MANAGER
If you ship packages internationally, you need to check out this
new offering from FedEx. Go to the FEDEX International Tools website at https://gtm.fedex.com/GTM?cntry_code=us or the FedEx home page (
http://www.fedex.com/us/?link=1 ) and click on "International Tools."
You'll see a host of services for the international shipper.
All you need to do is register (for free) and you'll be able to
use FedEx Global Trade Manager, which helps you to: find
international documents (Shipper's Export Declaration, Export
Commercial Invoice, etc.) for 38 countries; estimate duties and
taxes; obtain regulatory information; download country profiles;
and more. The Denied Party Screening Tool is especially
noteworthy. With that, you identify individuals and companies
included in current government lists of unacceptable trading
partners, thus avoiding some hefty fines. The Global Trade
Manager is an amazing resource that is useful for both buyers and
sellers.
COUNTRY TRAVEL REPORTS
If I were leaving for an international trip, I'd be a little
nervous, with all the unrest in the world today. I wouldn't be
canceling my reservations, but I'd certainly want to read up on
my destination country, which is why I'd visit Country Travel
Reports ( http://www.voyage.gc.ca/dest/ctry/reportpage-en.asp ).
This Canadian government site has detailed travel reports for
more than 200 destinations worldwide. Here you'll find
information about safety & security, crime, terrorism, getting
around inside the country, natural disasters & climate, local
laws & customs, entry/exit requirements, health concerns, and
more information to help you have a safe trip.
ASKJEEVES KIDS
In my family, I'm trying to keep up the image as Dad the Answer
Man as long as possible. My older kids have figured out that I
don't know everything, but my younger ones are still under the
impression that I'm a genius with a photographic memory. However,
there are times when even the youngest child asks a question I
can't answer, and when that happens I send them to AskJeeves Kids( http://www.ajkids.com ). This is a fast, easy and fun way for
kids to find answers to their questions online. Ask Jeeves for
Kids uses natural-language technology that allows kids to ask
questions, such as "Why is the sky blue?" or "Where do bugs go in
the winter?" in the same way they would ask a parent or teacher.
The service combines human editorial judgment with filtering
technology to enable kids to find both relevant and appropriate
answers on the Web.
FITA CAREER HEADQUARTERS - FEATURED JOB - EXPORT/IMPORT COMPLIANCE MANAGER FOR UNZ AND COMPANY
In the new FITA Career Headquarters job seekers can now apply for jobs online
and post their resume--free of charge--in an exclusive database that will be searched
by hundreds of industry employers seeking employees with international degrees
and/or related work experience. Featured job this week is for a Export / Import Compliance Manager for UNZ and Company, an international trade training organization since 1879. Click
here to browse more than 700 other positions! And click
here if you are an employer looking for uniquely qualified internationally-skilled
staff.
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GIVE US FEEDBACK!
Please tell us what you think of these Really Useful Sites! Send us your comments (newsletter@fita.org) about this or past issues or to give us suggestions about future editions!
BENEFITS FOR OUR SUBSCRIBERS
http://www.fita.org/marketplace FITA offers our subscribers many benefits. Go to the "Global Trade Shop" for services that are of great value. For example:
Take a look! We welcome our subscribers to publish this whole issue or articles from it. But please note that all material is copyrighted by FITA and must be copied with the following attribution: "This is copied from the newsletter Really Useful Sites for International Trade Professionals, a free, bi-weekly email publication of FITA - The Federation of International Trade Associations. Please feel free to subscribe to this newsletter at http://fita.org/useful."
If you'd like to see all back issues of Really Useful Sites for International Trade Professionals, the full list is at http://www.fita.org/useful/archives.
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